In
a typical system, election officials get information about a voter’s
identity, eligibility, address, and contact information through a form
completed at a public agency, such as a county election office or motor
vehicles office, or through an unregulated third party voter registration
group, such as a campaign or advocacy organization (ACORN, Project Vote).
- The Pew Center

A
major non-partisan
research project suggests that the U.S. is fast approaching the
status of Third-World Nation when it comes to the integrity of local
and national elections.

"Our
democratic process requires an effective system for maintaining accurate
voter registration information. Voter registration lists are used to
assign precincts, send sample ballots, provide polling place information,
identify and verify voters at polling places, and determine how resources,
such as paper ballots and voting machines, are deployed on Election
Day" state Pew Center statisticians.

These
systems are plagued with errors and inefficiencies that waste taxpayer
dollars, undermine voter confidence, and fuel partisan disputes over
the integrity
of our elections, according to Pew researchers.

Voter
registration in the United States largely reflects its 19th-century
origins and has not kept pace with advancing technology and a mobile
society. States’ systems must be brought into the 21st century
to be more accurate, cost-effective, and efficient, according to Pew
Center statement.

•
Approximately 24 million—one of every eight—active voter
registrations in the United States are no longer valid or are significantly
inaccurate.•
More than 1.8 million deceased individuals are listed as active voters.• Approximately 2.75 million people have active
registrations in more than one state.

Meanwhile,
researchers estimate at least 51 million eligible U.S. citizens are
unregistered, or more than 24 percent of the eligible population.

The
Pew study also found that the paper-based processes of most registration
systems present several opportunities
for error.

In
a typical system, election officials get information about a voter’s
identity, eligibility, address, and contact information through a form
completed at a public agency, such as a county election office or motor
vehicles office, or through an unregulated third party voter registration
group, such as a campaign or advocacy organization (ACORN, Project Vote).

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These
are sent to election offices, where the data often are manually entered
and names are added to the voter list. A voter must supply any change
to that information, such as a new address, name, or party affiliation,
which is usually manually entered and processed by election
officials.

The
study also identified:

•
Approximately 12.7 million records nationwide that appear to be out
of date and no longer reflect the voter’s current information.•
More than 1.8 million records for people who are no longer living, but
have active
registrations on voter rolls.•
About 12 million records with incorrect addresses, indicating that either
the voters have moved, or that errors in the information on file make
it unlikely the Postal Service can reach them.

These
systems are plagued with errors and inefficiencies that waste taxpayer
dollars, undermine voter confidence, and fuel partisan disputes over the
integrity of our elections, according to Pew researchers.